by Judy Handley | May 28, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 206, Year 8: No Weeds for Me
Date: Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Weather: Mostly Sunny and Warmer
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Late this afternoon, I was working in the garden at Heather’s. Jonah was helping me get rid of the string that held the peas up last year. He loves to help out by using Heather’s pruning shears to cut things, so I try to find jobs for him. About that time, Heather was weeding the asparagus patch. It was overrun by Lamb’s Quarter (Chenopodium berlandieri), an edible weed. She pulled up the ‘weeds’ and then brought the batch to me announcing that this would be our first greens of the season. I invited Jonah to cut off the root ends and when we were done, he looked at me very seriously and asked what we were going to do with the weeds. I explained that this particular weed is one we can eat and that we were going to have it for dinner. He looked up at me with a very stern face and said, “Oma, I’m not going to eat weeds.” I just smiled and thought, “Maybe next year.” By the way, Lamb’s Quarter was once a cultivated crop in North America and still is in Mexico. But now it is just simply the world’s most prolific weed.
by Judy Handley | May 27, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 205, Year 8: Sunny Memorial Day . . . Still Windy
Date: Monday, May 27, 2013
Weather: Warming Up, Sunny and Windy
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Finally we had a beautiful, sunny day. There is still a bit of chill in the air even though the daytime high was in the mid-60’s. However, with the wind, it felt a bit chillier. Mark and I had no grand plans for today, so we both launched into boat projects. I worked on cleaning the waterline and Mark worked on the new battery system. The current wiring was installed by Mark in Thailand. He had to use welding wire because there was no marine battery cable available. It worked just fine with the old batteries which drew lower amperage, but it was definitely not heavy enough for the new batteries which draw more amperage from the alternator. So now the new cable is installed and we can get more amperage in the bulk or early stages of charging. In the afternoon we went into town to do some shopping. We had a list of boat maintenance parts that took us from West Marine to a local boat yard to an auto supply shop to Walmart and finally to CVS for batteries for a water tester. We also went to a hardware store to get one of our LP gas tanks filled. Tomorrow Mark goes to work at West Marine and I’m hoping to go to Heather and Jed’s to do some internet work. When he goes to work, he takes his phone and that leaves me on the boat with no internet as the phone is our hot spot. I think his birthday present this July 7th is going to be a new phone. I’ll inherit his old one so that we can both have a phone that can be a hot spot.
by Judy Handley | May 26, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 204, Year 8: Still Cold and Windy
Date: Sunday, May 26, 2013
Weather: Windy and Cold for Late May
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
We’ve all had enough of this weather. When the daytime temp is in the 50’s and there is no wind and it is sunny—well, that’s tolerable. But when the daytime temp is in the 50’s and the nighttime temp is in the low 40’s and there is no sun and lots of wind—that’s no fun. And that, plus rain, is what we have had for this Memorial Day weekend. The Woods Hole May Fair took place today, but it was much reduced in size due to the weather. It was fun to watch the Woods Hole Day Care “alumni” carry the banner in the parade. Sam and his good friend Sebastian held up one end of the banner and just two years ago, they could hardly walk the whole parade route! Jonah and I followed with Ollie in his stroller. Before we know it, Ollie will be old enough to go to the Coop. Heather is in charge of fund raising for the Coop and today they made over $600 selling their strawberry shortcake despite the cold weather. That’s not as much as they normally make, but still enough to make the effort worth it.
Mark got a posting on his Facebook page from our daughter-in-law Jo this afternoon that is well worth passing along.
“Any damn fool can navigate the world sober. It takes a really good sailor to do it drunk.”
~ Sir Francis Chichester while loading his boat with gin.
Now that’s my kind of sailor. We often tell the story of leaving Thailand with 20 cases of beer to make it through the months in the Indian Ocean. We made it, but Sir Francis Chichester sailed single-handed (with his gin) around the world and at one time held the record for the fastest circumnavigator by completing the trip in just nine months and one day. I guess that’s what a boat load of gin can do for you!
by Judy Handley | May 25, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 203, Year 8: Cold and Rainy
Date: Saturday, May 25, 2013
Weather: Rainy, Windy, and Cold for Late May
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
May Fair was cancelled due to the weather. The forecast is for more of the same tomorrow, so it might be postponed until Monday. We’ll just have to wait and see. Heather remembers a Memorial Day even colder and rainier than this one ten years ago, but it is not the norm. The temp last night dipped down into the upper 30’s. Brrrrr!
We got an early start on Windbird this morning and Sam, Jonah, Mark, and I headed into Falmouth before 8 am. The boys and I dropped Mark off at work and then went to Heather and Jed’s to get a different pair of pants for Sam. The ones Heather brought weren’t Sam’s pick for the day and it was easier to go get another pair than to struggle with the issue. It was actually sunny and a little warmer in Falmouth, but by the time we got back to Woods Hole the rain had returned and it felt cold. Sam, Jonah, and I went out in the dinghy to get Heather and Oliver, and after spending some time on Windbird warming up a bit, we headed back out into the weather. By this time we knew the May Fair had been cancelled for today, but we still wanted to see Atlantis and Alvin before they left. Alvin had been brought out on deck for the public to see so we were able to get a few photos. We couldn’t get on Atlantis, but we could stand right next to it. While we were waiting for Atlantis to depart, we went to the town park so Sam and Jonah could play lacrosse. We had been told by a friend who is the captain of the Tioga, a much smaller WHOI research vessel, that Atlantis would not depart until 11:15. So at 11 am we got in the van and drove around to see her leave the dock. When we got to the waterfront, we could see that she had already left the dock, escorted by Tioga, but they were still in sight so we did get to see her leave—just not pull away from the dock. We then headed to Heather’s to get warm, let the kids take a nap, and get more clothes for another overnight on Windbird. Since we don’t have a bathtub on Windbird, I got Ollie in the tub while Heather and the boys were napping. Then Ollie and I took a little nap and before we knew it, it was time to pick Mark up from work. We went into Falmouth for a sushi dinner before heading back to Windbird and then we let the big boys stay up extra late to watch a video. Everyone is now tucked in and sound asleep. Jed will come home by noon tomorrow and hopefully by Monday we’ll see a little sunshine.
by Judy Handley | May 24, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 202, Year 8: Getting Ready for May Fair
Date: Friday, May 24, 2013
Weather: Rainy Day and Evening
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Tomorrow is a big day in Woods Hole. Weather permitting, there will be the May Fair in the village park, and rain or shine, at 11 am the scientific research vessel, R/V Atlantis, will set out with a brand new Alvin aboard. Alvin, owned by the US Navy and operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), is a manned deep-ocean research submersible vessel first commissioned in 1964. Atlantis is also owned by the US Navy and operated by WHOI, and when it leaves the dock tomorrow morning, it will not return for three years. So tonight, Heather and all three little ‘Goldpebbles’ are here aboard Windbird so we can get an early start in the morning. And it will be an early start since I have to take Mark to work at West Marine in Falmouth by 8 am. There will be the annual parade through Woods Hole at 10 am and then we’ll watch Atlantis leave. In between, Heather will be delivering the supplies and setting up the tables for making strawberry shortcake for 200 people during the day. This is a fundraiser for the Woods Hole Day Care Cooperative and Heather, Ollie, and I spent our entire day today getting ready. There were strawberries to pick up at one supermarket and whipped cream and fresh-baked biscuits at another. We also made a stop at Walmart for bottled water and other miscellaneous supplies. At the end of the day, Jed watched the boys while Heather and some other volunteers cut up the fresh strawberries at the Day Care center and I delivered food and clothes to Windbird in the rain. At some point in all of our running around, Heather asked, “Is life this complicated for all people?” She was referring to all of the juggling we had to do today with only two cars. First, Jed and Jonah drove the van to Woods Hole while Mark and I drove the Taurus from Woods Hole to Falmouth. Mark drove Heather to Sam’s school where she teaches science lessons every other Friday and I stayed home with Ollie. Then Ollie and I drove Mark to work at West Marine and went back to the school to pick up Heather. Are you exhausted yet? We’re just getting started. Then Heather, Ollie, and I drove to Woods Hole so Heather could record promos for her program for next week. We switched cars so that Heather, Ollie, and I were now in the van and we went back to Falmouth to pick up all the supplies for May Fair. Finally at the end of the day, Jed left for New Haven for his 20th college reunion, I delivered Heather and boys to Windbird, and then I drove to Falmouth to pick Mark up from work. Somehow we threw a bit of a dinner together and now all is quiet. Hopefully we all get a good night’s rest before the fun starts again!
by Judy Handley | May 23, 2013 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 8 |
Day 201, Year 8: Brave Jonah
Date: Thursday, May 23, 2013
Weather: Windy, Partly Cloudy Day, Rainy Evening
Location: Eel Pond, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Jonah is going to be four in June. He’s tiny for his age and is as cute as a button. And today he showed his brave side. I walked into the room where he was waiting to be taken to into the OR early this morning, and he and his momma were sitting on the bed together. Heather was filling out forms and Jonah was just enjoying the moment. Heather had told him what would be happening and he was fine with that—not one complaint. In the end, he didn’t have to have his adenoids removed, and only the tubes were put in. So once he came out from under the anesthesia, he was just fine. But we were all super proud of him for being such a brave little trouper.
Since I came into town early this morning, Mark took the bus in to work. I stayed at Heather’s for the day, doing a little bit of gardening, some laundry for Mark and I, and then driving to Hyannis for Heather. Trader Joe’s in Hyannis donated 50 pounds of frozen strawberries to Jonah’s school for their May Fair fundraising project—selling strawberry shortcake. And I volunteered to go get the frozen strawberries. Heather is in charge of fundraising for the school, so tomorrow she will pick up fresh strawberries, biscuits, and whipped cream to round out the shortcake. May Fair is held in Woods Hole on this weekend each year and different non-profit groups sell food as a yearly fund raiser. Unfortunately the weather report for Saturday looks rainy. Tomorrow there is 100% chance of rain in Woods Hole. Saturday looks a bit better, but the rain date for May Fair is Sunday, so we’ll just have to see how the weather plays out. Jed is leaving late tomorrow to head for New Haven, Connecticut, for the twentieth anniversary of his graduation from Yale. Heather and the boys are planning to come to Windbird to spend the night and then we’ll all go to the May Fair, weather permitting.
